1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to computer aided design and, more particularly, to a method, a system, and a computer readable medium for designing products (e.g., Camcorder, automobiles, tool machines, roboters) or industrial systems (e.g., power plants), and for engineering manufacturing systems (e.g., production lines, assembly lines) or systems for process industries (e.g., refineries, breweries). The invention is also applicable for engineering automation systems and for engineering solutions for automation problems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Flexibility and re-configurability are the current paradigms that should be considered in product development and in the engineering and design of manufacturing systems or systems for process industries, such as oil refineries, chemical plants, or breweries. To deal with such requirements, the systems are considered an assembly of intelligent components (mechatronic objects) settled in an engineering system, a control framework or a control system. Mechatronic objects can be used for the design of complex manufacturing systems, such as large machinery. In particular, the programming languages and structures defined under the International Electro Technical Commission (IEC) 1131-3 norm are considered regarding software concepts (e.g., data encapsulation) by the design of mechanical systems represented by mechatronic objects. The concept of mechatronic objects is well known in literature. For example, see “Mechatronic objects for real-time control software development” by P. F. Muir and J. W. Homer in Proceedings of the 1998 SPIE International Symposium on Intelligent Systems and Advanced Manufacturing: Mechatronics Conference, Nov. 5, 1998, Boston.
Management and controlling tasks in product and project business is crucial for a successful design, production or implementation, operation, maintenance and service, modernization and, if necessary, scrapping of products as well as plants, i.e., during the whole lifecycle of products and plants. It is highly desirable for project manager and other responsible persons to know at any time in a project (which may be conducted in and across any lifecycle phase of a product or plant) the realistic status in terms of timelines, quality, and efforts or costs. And this should be possible without too much effort. During project implementation, the necessary activities have to be executed by the involved project members correctly and efficiently, which means that there should be also sufficient technical support for their daily work.
Current solutions and tools do not support project members with appropriate workflow information dedicated to special activities in a project in an adequate manner.